SOC 101 (SUBJECT 2)✓

16

- DELILAH -

We shook as the water dripped down our bodies, the air unusually chilly, and our teeth chattered. The Sisters rubbed at their arms as well and shivered. The reason for our shivering was because the Sisters had changed the pattern after the first month. We had the cleansing at dawn, around 3 am. The weather was cold that morning.

"This is the fortieth day of your cleansing, may the Lord be with you." Sister Cecilia muttered, and we groggily replied, "Amen."

We stood up from our spots watching as the Sisters rushed back into their quarters, probably to take something hot that would help them with the cold. After changing out of the wet dress, we went to spread it, each person looking as drained as the other. A month had passed since our stay together and we had gotten closer than I thought we would. A self-discovery was what the Sisters called the retreat. We were going to learn how to be independent and also how to rely on others when necessary.

Mary had missed the cleansing today because she was on her period and it looked like she had it worse than anyone else. We had left a bucket beside her just in case, her irritation was also a trouble for us because we had to take up her role. We hurried back into the comfort of our beds knowing we'd have to wake up by 5 am to have our baths. Through our first month, we had relied on the Sisters, but through this month, they had left us to ourselves. They said they had done enough for us and we were to take care of ourselves.

I jumped up from my bed as well as a number of girls when we heard the sound of retching. Mary bent over the bucket, puking her guts out and sobbing in pain. We rubbed her head and her back, all while muttering sorry and yawning. The sleepiness was all for her sake. It was just her second day and we had all had to stay up with her through it, she had refused on her first day only for it to worsen.

"It's 5 am, let's go, Mary." One girl said, pulling Mary up and going to the bathroom.

The boys stood by the entrance of our room, eyes glancing at Mary in worry, "Are you sure it's just her period symptoms? It looks like she's sick."

We looked down at our hands, not able to say much because we didn't know enough about her to conclude what was happening. The boys sighed, walking in and going to meet the group of girls they stayed with. The month had given me a lot of surprises, from the midnight fiasco to the boys staying here whenever we were getting ready for our baths. They stayed in the room with us through it all, I was one of the shy ones who couldn't take off their clothes in the presence of the perverted boys. It got me a lot of teasing, but I didn't mind.

I looked to the side, watching as Delilah unwrapped a lollipop and placed it in her mouth, sparing me a glance before plopping down on a boy's thighs and pressing her lips against his teasingly. I turned away from the sight, unsure of how to react, she still stared at me. Delilah had ruined the chances of our friendship the day she had crossed her bounds, the day she had shown me that she was only close to me for her selfish gain.

It was one of the things I knew would remain on my mind no matter how long time passed. She had followed me into the bathroom, without my knowledge, and had proceeded to kiss me. It was straight out of the pits of hell and I had shoved her off me only to get pressed further against the wall with her frame towering over me. I hated that I had pulled her back in the brief moment of insanity I had felt. She liked it and I knew she did. The kiss was too dangerous for it to keep happening, it wasn't meant to be.

I had kissed a girl, not even a boy. What did that say about me? Was I even much worse than the other ones? I didn't know and there was no way I could because there was no way I could ask that question out loud. Not to any of the children in the retreat, not even my mother.